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'We weren't expecting it': Surge in absentee ballots changed outcome for New Mexico US House seat

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Updated: 7:03 PM PST Nov 7, 2018

Xochitl Torres Small

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'We weren't expecting it': Surge in absentee ballots changed outcome for New Mexico US House seat

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Updated: 7:03 PM PST Nov 7, 2018

Roughly 8,000 absentee ballots made the difference in who was elected to New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District seat.

After an additional day of counting ballots, Democratic candidate Xochitl Torres Small was named the winner.

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“We had an unprecedented amount. We weren't expecting it, and we frankly didn't have the people infrastructure in place,” said Amanda Lopez Askin, Doña Ana County Clerk.

Torres Small's opponent, Yvette Herrell, had already given a victory speech on Tuesday. But Torres Small did not concede.

On Tuesday, the seven-member absentee voter board spent 16 hours sorting the ballots, but were only able to tabulate half.

“We had triple to quadruple the number of absentee ballots this year compared to 2016 and 2014,” Lopez Askin said.

At midnight, the county clerk saw the fatigue and swollen hands of the workers and stopped the counting.

“I didn't want them to make mistakes, and it wasn’t reasonable or right for me to expect them to work throughout the night to complete that,” Lopez Askin said.

Five members of the Torres Small campaign, as well five members from Herrell's, were deputized as poll workers to help get through all the votes Wednesday.

“This is a vote. It’s an important document that we want to make sure is counted. There's an appropriate way to do it, and it isn't always fast, and it shouldn't be fast if we want to do it right,” Lopez Askin said.

All 17 workers together opened envelopes, sorted and helped tabulate the votes.

For most of Tuesday night, results had Torres Small within 1 or 2 percentage points of Herrell, who was leading as of Wednesday morning.

The district covers southern New Mexico. The seat was vacated by U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, who ran unsuccessfully for governor.

Herrell's campaign released the following statement:

"Last night, Yvette Herrell was declared the winner of New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District," said Rob Burgess, senior adviser to the Herrell campaign. "We know that an open and honest process in Dona Ana County will confirm the outcome of this election."